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Mar 7, 2006 5:31 am US/Pacific
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SUV Police Chase Suspect Pleads Not Guilty
LANCASTER, Calif. (CBS) ―
Robyn Ramsey, the woman accused of taking a deputy's black-and-white SUV and leading authorities on a two-hour chase in the Lancaster area, pleaded not guilty on Monday to seven felony charges.
Ramsey, 25, of Littlerock, was arraigned before Antelope Valley Superior Court Judge Steven Ogden on one count each of grand theft of personal property, evading arrest, unlawful taking of a special vehicle and accessory after the fact. She also is charged with three counts of assault on a peace officer for allegedly driving toward sheriff's deputies with the SUV.
Luis Alberto Napoles, who faces one count each of assault with a firearm, unlawful driving or taking of a vehicle, receiving stolen property, grand theft auto and accessory after the fact, also pleaded not guilty.
Information on Napoles' relationship to Ramsey and his alleged involvement in the SUV incident could not be immediately ascertained.
The SUV was stolen about 9:20 a.m. Thursday in Littlerock when a deputy left the engine running as he was questioning Ramsey about a stolen-vehicle case, sheriff's officials said.
After the woman drove off, authorities followed her on the ground and via a helicopter, speaking with her on the patrol vehicle's radio as she drove around surface streets in Lancaster.
Deputies finally ended the chase by deploying a spike strip that shredded the left rear tire of the four-wheel-drive vehicle.
Law surrounded the SUV and pulled her out of the vehicle near13th Street West and Ivesbrook Street.
The state took away Ramsey's two children, 7-year-old Amber and 5-year-old Brittany, two years ago.
Bonnie Ramsey, Robyn's mother, said her daughter had been addicted to methamphetamine, but was trying to recover. She called her daughter a good mother. "But when she's under the drugs, nobody, you know, when they're on drugs, it's very difficult to make the right decision."
Sheriff's Deputy David Jennings took issue with Ramsey's statements.
"A mom's obviously going to want to come to the aid of her daughter, even though she knows she's got a troubled past," Jennings said. "But the reality of it is, you know, she knew what she was doing. She took a sheriff's vehicle... She stole a radio car and she put a lot of people in danger when she did it."
Ramsey is being held on $300,000 bail and Napoles on $105,000 bond. Both will be returned to the Lancaster courthouse March 16 for a preliminary hearing.
(© 2006 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)